"So it really is impossible to tell how this will end."
Ensei nodded. Given the current situation, no one could confidently predict the outcome. Both sides had their own strengths.
The Hakura family's Soul-Calming Secret Technique gave Rogen the ability to fight above his level, especially when combined with Old Shu Han Dough.
Kael, on the other hand, was a Supreme Dragon Chef—but so far, most of what he'd shown belonged to red cuisine.
He had dabbled in white cuisine as well, but it clearly wasn't his strongest suit. Because of that, even now, no one dared to say who would win.
"Kid, what exactly are you planning to make with those ingredients?"
Rogen quickly finished selecting what he needed. But when he turned to look at Kael, he froze.
Kael had chosen the exact same ingredients.
"What? Seeing me pick the same ingredients as you shocked you?" Kael asked with a grin.
"You sharp-tongued brat. I won't stoop to arguing with you."
Rogen tossed out the words and stormed off with a dark expression. Kael calmly returned to his own station.
Soon, both of them began kneading dough.
Rogen brought out Old Shu Han Dough—an heirloom passed down through the Hakura family for generations. Once mixed in, the fermentation effect was terrifyingly powerful.
Kael didn't have Old Shu Han Dough, but he had something else—qi.
Qi could alter the very nature of ingredients. Using it, Kael forcibly accelerated the fermentation process.
Of course, dough fermented this way couldn't compare to Old Shu Han Dough. After all, Shu Han noodles had been passed down for over seventeen hundred years, evolving into something truly unique—a living history spanning nearly two millennia.
Kael's qi could drastically improve fermentation speed and quality, far surpassing ordinary dough, but it still fell short of Old Shu Han Dough.
At least for now.
That might not remain true in the future. Qi could continue to grow stronger, and Kael was still some distance away from the Big Four—let alone beings like Yuanling or the Ferocious Fiends.
"No wonder it's Old Shu Han Dough. That fermentation speed is absurd."
Everyone stared as Rogen's dough visibly expanded at an astonishing rate. But when they turned toward Kael's side, their eyes widened even further.
"What's going on? Why is Kael's dough fermenting so fast too? Does he also have Old Shu Han Dough?"
Ensei was stunned. If Old Shu Han Dough caused this, it made sense—but Kael having it?
"That's impossible," Arkan said, equally shocked. "If he had that Dough, he wouldn't be eyeing Rogen's so openly. He must be using some method we don't understand."
Arkan was certain Kael didn't possess Old Shu Han Dough. And even so, the fermentation effect on Kael's side was still slightly inferior.
Otherwise, Kael's wager wouldn't have been focused on Old Shu Han Dough—he'd have demanded Rogen himself.
Neither of them realized Kael was using qi. They had never mastered it, and Kael's control had already reached a refined level. When he used qi, there were no visible signs.
Kaiyu also possessed qi, but whether in quantity or control, he was far inferior to Kael. When Kaiyu used qi, his skin visibly flushed red.
Rogen, the Dim Sum King, was equally dumbfounded. Old Shu Han Dough was a family inheritance—so what did Kael have?
Unable to figure it out, Rogen didn't ask. He'd already learned during ingredient selection that questioning Kael only led to frustration.
"What exactly are they making? Their steps are identical—both using the Eight Great Seafood ingredients, both stewing in clay pots!"
Watching the two move in near-perfect mirror images, Ensei felt completely lost.
Were they really making the same dish?
That seemed impossible. The Hakura family's techniques were built around the Soul-Calming Secret Technique. If they cooked the same dish, how could Kael possibly win against that?
Yet when they began further processing the dough, everyone's eyes widened again.
Rogen abruptly tossed his dough aside and leapt out from behind his station.
"Kid—where did you learn the essence of the Return-to-Zero technique?!"
During the initial fermentation stage, there was no need for heavy kneading. But now, further processing required the Hakura family's secret technique—the White Luo Serpent Coil.
And Kael was using it.
Perfectly.
"You're telling me the Hakura family's seventeen-hundred-year legacy left nothing behind?" Kael said with a laugh. "Sure, by your generation, there's only you left—just a cranky old man—but after over a thousand years, it's impossible for nothing to have leaked out."
He was spouting nonsense—but it sounded completely reasonable.
The Hakura lineage had reached its end with Rogen. If Rogen died without a disciple, the family's bloodline and techniques would vanish entirely.
Who could say whether some ancestor hadn't secretly passed down the family's techniques, including the Soul-Calming Secret Technique?
With everyone else long dead, there was no way to verify what had happened in the past.
"How does this kid have the time to master so many things? How old is he, anyway?!"
The crowd was utterly shaken.
Reaching the level of a Supreme Dragon Chef at such a young age was already outrageous. Now he'd also inherited the Hakura family's techniques.
That explained everything. They weren't copying each other—they came from the same source. Of course they'd make the same dish.
Rogen's advantage was gone.
Even with Old Shu Han Dough, it wasn't enough to bridge the gap.
Rogen clearly understood this as well. His expression slowly calmed, and he returned to his station, quietly focusing on the dish he was about to present.
This strange calm surprised Kael.
From both the original story and what he'd seen so far, Rogen was an arrogant man with a sharp tongue. Learning that Kael had mastered the Hakura inheritance should have sent him into a rage.
Instead, he'd gone quiet.
Kael couldn't figure it out—and decided not to dwell on it. He focused on cooking.
Both of them prepared the same dish.
Four Gods Seafood Eight Treasure Buns.
Once finished, cloths were placed over their dishes. When they were lifted—
Two pillars of light shot into the sky.
But Kael's was far larger.
From within it, the phantoms of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise emerged.
The Four Sacred Beasts.
The difference was obvious at a glance.
After the judges tasted both dishes, the result was unanimous.
Kael won.
Rogen personally tasted Kael's buns—and froze.
In terms of the Soul-Calming Secret Technique, Kael had already surpassed him.
This was thanks to Kael's Gourmet Cells enhancing not just his body, but his soul—and the support of qi.
If Gourmet Cells didn't strengthen the soul as well, no one would survive entering the Soul World for long.
A powerful soul, reinforced by qi, had pushed Kael's mastery of the Soul-Calming Secret Technique to terrifying heights.
Even Rogen was affected.
"I lost," Rogen said calmly. "You inherited not only the White Luo Serpent Coil, but also the Soul-Calming Secret Technique. Since you won, Old Shu Han Dough is yours. And this—take it as well."
He hurled the jar containing Old Shu Han Dough to Kael, not even keeping a portion for himself. Along with it, he handed over his scepter.
Kael was puzzled.
The scepter made sense. In the original story, even when Rogen tied, he gave it away. Losing outright made that expected.
But giving up all of Old Shu Han Dough?
That was strange. It could easily be divided.
"From today on, you are the successor of the Hakura family," Rogen said evenly. "Honestly, I should thank you. I failed to pass on the family line—my bloodline ends with me."
"I planned to take the Hakura legacy to the grave. But since you've already mastered it, I have no right to stop you. Looks like this is how the Hakura family ends."
Hearing this, Kael finally understood.
Rogen had let go.
Seeing that Kael had inherited both the Hakura techniques and the Soul-Calming Secret Technique, he realized the legacy would continue—even without him.
As for whether hoarding such knowledge until death was right or wrong… in this era, it was all too common.
Many people without heirs chose to bury their knowledge with themselves rather than pass it on.
Rogen's plan had simply failed.
"There's no need to give me this," Kael said, handing the scepter back. "As for the Hakura legacy—if you don't pass it on yourself, then one day, if I see someone suitable, I'll do it for you."
Letting such a powerful lineage vanish entirely would be a waste.
In the end, Rogen didn't insist on giving him the scepter again. He was satisfied—someone would carry the Hakura legacy forward.
For an old man like him, that was enough.
After their exchange, Rogen left.
Despite being over a hundred years old, his movements were swift and sharp. Even when members of the Dark Cooking Society tried to intercept him, he escaped smoothly.
Kael neither stopped him nor helped.
Rogen had joined the Dark Cooking Society at an advanced age. He'd never truly belonged.
If he returned after losing, his fate wouldn't be pleasant.
Lin chefs who lost paid a price—like Roco, who was branded with the Mark of Bad Taste.
For the Five Tiger Stars, defeat usually meant death—though Kaiyu was an exception.
Rogen wasn't willing to pay that price.
Leaving outright was a slap in the Dark Cooking Society's face. Even Arkan and Ensei wouldn't allow it easily—but Rogen was strong.
They failed to stop him.
Once Rogen was gone, Kael turned his gaze toward Arkan and Ensei.
"Your turn," Kael said. "Which one of you is first?"
The two exchanged a look.
Arkan stepped forward.
"I will."
Just two words—but the pressure radiating from him was overwhelming.
"I've heard you possess a power similar to Explosive Flame," Arkan said. "How about a fire technique duel? Any ingredients you like."
"Fine," Kael replied. "I've held the title of the continent's greatest fire chef for a long time now."
Both moved to select ingredients.
Since this wasn't a battle on the river, Arkan chose sea bass.
This would be a pure fire duel.
Once they returned to their stations, Arkan's body began to glow red.
The next instant, terrifying high-temperature steam erupted from him.
Arkan couldn't suppress the heat indefinitely and needed cold water to cool down—but raising his temperature was effortless.
Wrapped in blazing steam, he no longer looked human.
Even the firewood ignited instantly under his presence.
Seeing this, Kael felt a sense of familiarity.
He possessed Explosive Flame as well—but his version had already evolved far beyond Arkan's.